Race tech: Giro d'Italia time trial bikes

Massive photo gallery: speed machines in Belfast

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This year's Giro d'Italia kicked off with a 21.7km-long team time trial around the streets of Belfast in Northern Ireland. The roads were wet, the rain was sputtering, and the winds were whipping about but that didn't keep teams from cracking out their full-blown aero machinery. Take a look at some of the bikes that the riders used today

(Jonny Irick)

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This wiring may not be completely hidden but it's quite neat nonetheless and still allows easy access to the charge port

Europcar made use of Colnago K.Zeros for the opening round of the Giro d'Italia. This one belongs to Japanese rider Yukiya Arashiro

(Jonny Irick)

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The cable is fed into the side of the linear-pull front brake caliper on Europcar's Colnago K.Zero

(Jonny Irick)

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Relatively short extensions for Europcar rider Yukiya Arashiro

(Jonny Irick)

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The forward-mounted bolts on the Colnago K.Zero seatpost clamp might not be as sleek as rear-mounted ones but in this orientation, the frame isn't ruined if you strip out some threads

(Jonny Irick)

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Lampre-Merida's Merida Warp TT. Recognize any familiar cues? We're not saying that Merida copied anyone, mind you, but time trial bikes are rapidly approaching parity in many aspects of their shape and design concepts

(Jonny Irick)

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Brakes tucked underneath the chain stays allow for shaping like this

(Jonny Irick)

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The Merida Warp TT stem's open bottom provides a handy exit point for cables and wires

(Jonny Irick)

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Bianchi's D2 time trial bike normally has a fork with linear-pull brakes mounted behind the crown…

(Jonny Irick)

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FDJ.fr used Lapierre's recently revamped Aerostorm for the opening time trial

(Jonny Irick)

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You know, just in case the FDJ.fr guys need a little motivation

(Jonny Irick)

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Is this a new saddle from Selle Italia? Sure looks that way

(Jonny Irick)

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Katusha sponsor Canyon is another manufacturer that has managed to tuck away the brakes inside the chassis

(Jonny Irick)

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Canyon provided this custom painted Aeroad CF to Katusha rider Daniel Moreno to celebrate his win at Fleche Wallonne in 2013. Moreno used this bike just to warm up today, of course

(Jonny Irick)

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Wilco Kelderman's (Belkin) Bianchi D2

(Jonny Irick)

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Belkin's Bianchi D2 time trial bikes have a few interesting details, such as the portholes in the chain stays and the reverse-mounted linear-pull brakes that are tucked away behind the fork blades

(Jonny Irick)

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These 25mm-wide tires may have come in handy for the Belkin team as they traversed Belfast's wet roads

(Jonny Irick)

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Tinkoff-Saxo's Specialized S-Works Shiv

(Jonny Irick)

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These brakes were once encased in a giant 'nosecone' - that is, until the UCI deemed it illegal for competition

(Jonny Irick)

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Tinkoff-Saxo's fleet just before the start of the opening team time trial

(Jonny Irick)

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Compact U-brakes are set below the chain stays on Tinkoff-Saxo's Specialized S-Works Shiv time trial bikes

(Jonny Irick)

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However, Androni Giocattoli-Venezuela team bikes used standard forks (whose paint jobs didn't even match) and conventional front brake calipers for the time trial

(Jonny Irick)

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fi'zi:k's new Tritone TT/Tri saddle features a virtually nonexistent nose and a deep central channel

(Jonny Irick)

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Aerobars can be awfully busy pieces of real estate

(Jonny Irick)

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Domenico Pozzovivo's (Ag2r-La Mondiale) Focus Izalco Chrono

(Jonny Irick)

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This type of seat cluster shaping is now very commonly used by multiple manufacturers

(Jonny Irick)

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The Colombia team used these brightly colors Wilier Triestina TwinBlades

(Jonny Irick)

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The Wilier Triestina TwinBlade certainly has a uniquely shaped front end

(Jonny Irick)

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Rear brakes are tucked underneath the chain stays on the Wilier Triestina TwinBlade

(Jonny Irick)

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So if time trial bikes are so aerodynamic, that should mean they have less of an impact on a car's fuel economy than a standard road bike when mounted on the roof, right?

(Jonny Irick)

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This Lotto-Belisol rider had some Lizard Skins DSP handlebar tape applied to his Look KéO Blade pedal, likely to provide a more solid interface

(Jonny Irick)

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Lotto-Belisol's K-Edge chain catchers have SRM magnets attached to an adjustable stalks on their ends

(Jonny Irick)

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Another team running wider tires - but on narrow rims

(Jonny Irick)

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BMC didn't just cordon off an area for its riders. It created a virtual compound that was bordered by team vehicles

(Jonny Irick)

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Although they weren't going to be used that day, most teams nonetheless had their road bikes on display

Bardiani CSF was another team opting for wider 25mm tires but in this case, they're mounted to narrow Campagnolo rims

(Jonny Irick)

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The opening team time trial of this year's Giro d'Italia started in the shadow of the Titanic Belfast building

(Jonny Irick)

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Dan Martin's ill-fated Cervélo P5 just before the start of the team time trial. The Garmin-Sharp rider had high hopes of putting on a good show in front of the home crowd but sadly his Giro is over almost before it began

Cervélo bucks the trend with a blunt-tailed stem that sits above the top tube

(Jonny Irick)

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Garmin-Sharp team mechanics have devised a clever workaround for the Cervélo P5's Magura hydraulic brakes, which aren't technically compatible with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 shift buttons. Unfortunately, though, this solution requires destroying a perfectly good Di2 TT lever in the process since it supposedly can't be done with a less expensive bar-end shifter

(Jonny Irick)

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Time trial bikes - especially ones with integrated brakes - are notorious for subpar braking performance on account of their convoluted internal routing. Cervélo's P5, however, gets around the problem by using specially made Magura fully hydraulic brakes that are far more tolerant of tight bends

(Jonny Irick)

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The Cervélo P5 seatpost clamp is neatly integrated into the frame's shape

(Jonny Irick)

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Garmin-Sharp says that Rotor now only provides solid outer chainrings, partially for stiffness but also to provide a bigger billboard for logos

Team mechanics fashioned this pedestal clock so that riders could keep an eye on the time during warmup

(Jonny Irick)

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Katusha's mean-looking Canyon Speedmax CF

(Jonny Irick)

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Trek Factory Team's Trek Speed Concepts are lined up for their pre-race warmup

(Jonny Irick)

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Team Sky warms up on Wahoo Fitness electromagnetic KICKR trainers

(Jonny Irick)

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Race rules require that all team time trial bikes have identical paint jobs. That means special treatments such as color accents for national champions are relegated to the top of the team car

(Jonny Irick)

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Team Sky's army of Pinarello Bolides at the ready

(Jonny Irick)

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Team Sky is using Wahoo KICKR digital trainers this year

(Jonny Irick)

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The front and rear brakes of Team Sky's Pinarello Bolide time trial bikes hide behind smoothly profiled shrouds. How the rear qualifies as a structural element - a requirement by UCI rules - isn't immediately obvious

(Jonny Irick)

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Is this a team pit area or a fun house? Sometimes it's hard to tell, depending on your perspective

(Jonny Irick)

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The custom integrated aerobars on Team Sky's time trial bikes are remarkably smooth

(Jonny Irick)

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Just basic strips of friction tape for Team Sky's time trial bikes

(Jonny Irick)

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Shimano offers two different types of Dura-Ace Di2 bar-end shifters: ones with two buttons each for shifting the front and rear derailleur, and others with just one button each to control just the rear shifting. After all, if you have to resort to the inner chainring in most Grand Tour time trials, something has gone horribly wrong

This year's Giro d'Italia kicked off with a 21.7km team time trial around the streets of Belfast in Northern Ireland. The roads were wet, the rain was sputtering, and the winds were whipping about, but that didn't keep teams from cracking out their full-blown aero machinery. Take a look at some of the bikes that the riders used today.